It is well known that many types of hasps have been provided for use in connection with the securing of doors, gates, tool chests, cellar doors, cabinets and the like in order that these items may be secured and even padlocked to maintain them on occasion in the closed position.
Hasps have also been used on the deck hatches of boats in order that they may be padlocked to prevent theft of boat cushions, fishing equipment and the like from under-deck storage space when the boat owner is away, and the boat has been left moored to a dock, residing on its trailer, or the like. Unfortunately, most hasps have a fixed, upstanding loop residing 5/8" or more above the deck, designed to receive a padlock, with a large slotted portion of the hasp being designed to interfit with the loop. When the hasp is in its closed position, and a padlock put through the loop, the hatch cannot be opened. In addition, the hasps are ordinarily attached to the deck by a hinged heel plate screwed into the deck from above, typically creating a 1/2" projection at the hinge.
A fixed, upstanding loop ordinarily does not cause inconvenience when mounted on a door or gate, but when the loop is mounted either on a hatch, or the deck of the boat adjacent the hatch, the loop poses a safety threat in that the loop may well cause a person to trip, or if he or she steps on the loop wearing anything except hard-soled shoes, the upstanding loop may cause pain if not injury to the foot of the boater. Frequent breakage of the loop portion occurs, which is a major problem in deck mounted hasps.
It was for the purpose of overcoming the disadvantages attendant the use of ordinary hasps employed in the locking of hatches of a boat that we evolved several embodiments of a novel flush-hasp device, each of which represents a distinct advantage over the prior art.